Reconcile
by Murasaki Rose
Summary: Yami Bakura x Ryou, shonen-ai. Final piece in the Acceptance trilogy. Three years after the final duel, Ryou seeks to regain the missing half of his soul.


Author: Murasaki Rose  
email: see profile  
Archive: Go for it! Just let me know where so I can link ya!

Title: Reconcile  
Spoilers: Memory arc, end of series  
Warnings: Shonen-ai, male/male pairing  
Pairings: Yami no Bakura x Ryou Bakura, YxYY mentioned  
A/N: "text" speech, 'text' thought-text- telepathy/text/ hikari to yami mindlink:text: yami to hikari  
mindlink

Supplement to A/N: This is the final piece of the Acceptance trilogy. I am writing a parallel Yugi x Atem series, and am  
considering doing a short Jou x Mai piece.

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Reconcile

"Should it still hurt this bad?"

Amethyst eyes looked up from the textbook they had been focused on to regard the owner's silver-haired roommate. "I honestly don't know, Ryou-kun. I just know that it does," Yugi replied softly, his voice holding an undercurrent of deep pain.

Over the last three years the two hikari had grown close and had become roommates after high school. They even attended the  
same university. The two hikari understood the other's pain, both having experienced that same joy of being reunited with the  
missing half of their souls and the sorrow of losing them shortly after.

It wasn't fair.

"This CAN'T be right!" Ryou growled, clenching his fists. "How are we supposed to protect the balance when WE aren't  
balanced anymore!"

Yugi shook his head, he'd asked that question himself many times before. Every time he used his powers(1), he could feel the  
shadows pulling at him. He and Ryou were light without darkness. Something the shadows craved.

Sighing in frustration, Ryou flopped onto his bed and glared at the ceiling as though it were at fault.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

In retrospect, Ryou thought he and Yugi had been fools.

About a week after their conversation, Ryou had been writing a letter to Malik when inspiration struck. If even the smallest  
possibility existed that their yamis could be returned to them, the Ishtars would be able to find it.

So he'd asked.

His reply from Malik had been both encouraging and insulting at the same time. "Of course there's a spell. We've been  
waiting for you two idiots to get your act together and ask us!"

The Ishtars had simply assumed that the two hikari had needed the time to discover their true feelings and establish  
independence from their yami.

Well, they had needed it. But the first year was MORE than sufficient.

The spell was simple enough. Just a series of incantations to summon and shape the magic necessary. However, it required the  
blessing of a pharaoh. The hard part would be locating Atem's father and asking for his blessing, as Atem could not bless  
himself and no other pharaoh would care.

Now Ryou, Yugi, and all their friends were headed for the ruined temple below Kul Elna(2). Even the Kaiba brothers had joined them in their venture. But while all their friends knew they were bringing back Atem, only Yugi and the Ishtars knew about Bakhura(3).

He didn't want them to worry about it.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

"What of you, little thief? Will you take your yami back?"

Ryou stared at the glowing Sennen item before him as the Pharaoh addressed him. "Sennen ring is yours, Bakura Ryou. Just as  
it was in your former life."

"Former life?" the teen echoed, still suffering from mild shock over having the Sennen Ring appear before him.

Akunamanon nodded, "You truly were the Thief King of Khemet(4), but before your dark half was sealed, he had become tainted by the power of Zork Necrophadius. Now that Zork has been defeated, the taint is gone and I can restore your missing half to you."

"But what if he tries to steal the items again? Or kill my friends?" Ryou's voice was pained yet filled with longing and  
conflict. No matter how much he wanted his yami back, he would not put his friends in danger again.

"The power he wished to harness is gone, he has no reason to try again."

"What about my friends?"

"Before, when he harmed them, did it make you unhappy?"

"H-Hai."

"Then know this reborn child of Kul Elna, without Zork's influence your yami will feel your pain as though it was his own,  
as you will feel his. He will become the dark guardian he should have been from the day you received the Ring."

Ryou closed his eyes, his head down in thought. So many risks . . . yet this was the reason he'd come . . . Raising doe brown  
eyes to the former Pharaoh, Bakura Ryou plucked the Ring from where it floated before him. "What do I need to do?" he asked, disregarding the fearful cries of his friends.

"Hold the Ring to your chest and call to him with your heart."

Closing his eyes, Ryou did as he was told/Yami . . . come home/

: . . -kari . .:

Ryou's eyes widened, was that . . /Yami/ Tentatively.

The ring flared in response, pointed spikes chiming wildly together as a bright flash filled the room . . .

:I'm home, yadonushi.:

Blinking his eyes fiercely to clear them, Ryou stifled a gasp as the link between he and his other snapped fully into place.  
When his vision cleared, the silver-haired teen found himself staring at a deeply-tanned chest. Fascinated, Ryou let his  
eyes rove over his yami's muscular body. At Bakhura's amused chuckle, red rushed to his cheeks as he shifted his gaze up  
to see his yami's face. Gasping in awe, the silver-haired teen got his first look at his yami's true face. Shoulder-length,  
silver hair, lavender eyes, and a scar that gave him a more roguish appearance.

'Wow.'

Giving his wide-eyed hikari what he hoped was a reassuring smile, Bakhura initiated the first touch. Reaching out and  
brushing his knuckles along the curve of Ryou's cheek, marveling at the softness of his skin. Ryou remained perfectly still  
throughout Bakhura's "petting". The gentle teen still didn't know what to do. Wanting nothing more than to throw his arms  
around the darkness, yet afraid of his others reaction if he did. He could still sense his other's darkness and knew  
instinctively that the former spirit could and would kill if he wished. But that same instinct told him that the Thief King  
would never harm him or those he cared for.

Sensing his hikari's thoughts, Bakhura smirked at the teen, effectively scaring the hell out of him and everyone else. That  
smile never meant anything good. Before anyone could even think to say anything, the thief had his light slung over his  
shoulder in a fireman's carry and was casually strolling for the exit, chuckling at the sound the teen had made. He hadn't  
known his hikari could squeak.

Ryou on the other hand, was completely mortified and trying desperately to hide behind his own hair.

"Oi! Where are you taking Ryou!"

Bakhura smirked back at the group, "Back to his room at the inn you're staying at. There's no reason for us to remain in this  
damn tomb any longer."

"You can't just walk across the desert without-"

The dark thief raised an eyebrow, "Who said I was walking?"

Shadow magic swirled around the pair, materializing into the form of Bakhura and Ryou's ka, Diabound. "Ikuzo!" the thief  
commanded, smacking his light's behind playfully. Ryou squalled indignantly, but any comments he may have made were lost to  
the group as the yami and hikari vanished.

There was a moment of awkward silence before Jou ventured a question, "Ryou-kun's not in any danger, is he?"

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

Humming along with the radio, Ryou danced slowly to the beat, enjoying this rare moment of peace. Between school and two  
high-maintenance yamis, it was rare the two hikari had any quiet time that wasn't dedicated to homework. Both Bakhura and Atem had an incredible knack for causing trouble, whether it was on purpose or not, especially regarding modern appliances. Oh, they'd both mastered the television fast enough, but kitchen appliances and power tools seemed to have it out for the two spirits. Ryou had long since lost count of how many microwaves the duo had destroyed. But when it all came down to it, Ryou wouldn't have things any other way. Bakhura was back and that's all that mattered to him.

Ryou nearly jumped out of his skin, as warm arms wrapped around him from behind. :Having fun, hikari:

/Bakhura! Are you trying to scare me to death/

:Of course not, hikari. Where would the fun in that be: the thief purred, pulling Ryou snug against his chest to nuzzle his throat. :I  
have MUCH more enjoyable plans for you.:

Smiling, Ryou turned in his embrace, wrapping his arms around his dark half. /Mmm, care to enlighten me/

Chuckling mentally, Bakhura pressed his lips to Ryou's:Let me show you instead.:

Tightening his arms around his dark, the silver-haired teen intensified their kiss. /I can't wait./

2/18/05

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1 - Just a little theory here. If Yugi and Ryou are the reincarnations of Atem and Bakhura, then they would have the same  
inherit abilities. Bakhura didn't need the Ring to summon his ka, it just increased his power. (Going by the manga, he could summon Diabound at will.) So even though they don't have their items anymore the two teens still have access to their power.

2- This would be the actual name of Bakhura's village. "Kuru Eruna" is the romaji version. Check out the March issue of Shonen Jump to see. (They've got Malik's name wrong though. Correct me if I'm wrong, but "Marik" isn't arabic. Feh.)

3- Yup, did this on purpose. Gave his name an Arabic twist.

4- Ancient Egyptian name for Egypt.

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Disclaimer: Here we go. Yu-Gi-Oh and all it's characters are the property of Kazuki Takahashi, Shueisha, Konami, Toei, and  
unfortunately, 4 Kids Entertainment. I'm not making any money off of this, I'm just having fun. Suing me would be largely  
pointless as I am just a poor college student that works for the school system.


End file.
